A new proposal has been put forward by DAERA which would see splash plates for slurry spreading completely phased out in NI by February 2030.

At present, all agricultural contractors and farms with over 200 livestock units are required to use low-emission slurry spreading equipment (LESSE).

DAERA’s new plan is to make LESSE a requirement for farms with a stocking rate over 150kg of nitrogen per hectare (kgN/ha) from February 2027.

A year later, from February 2028, it will apply to farms stocked at over 100kgN/ha and all slurry in NI will need to be spread with LESSE from February 2030 under the proposals.

The stocking rate element of the new plan is based on livestock manure nitrogen production, so it does not consider exports or imports of slurry on to farms.

This differs from nitrogen loading, which is used for calculating stocking rates for nitrates derogations.

DAERA are also proposing a ban on the use of unprotected urea fertiliser, although a timeline for this measure has not been suggested yet.

The proposals on LESSE and urea fertiliser are set out in a new ammonia strategy which was published by the department last week.

DAERA intend to run a public consultation on the proposals shortly as part of its wider review of the nutrients action programme.

Ammonia strategy

The latest proposals are a follow on from DAERA’s original draft ammonia strategy which was published in early 2023.

That document included a plan to phase out splash plates by 2026, although the roll out of the measures was delayed, mainly due to the absence of ministers at Stormont.

A survey carried out by DAERA last year found that only 12% of NI farms currently own LESSE, such as dribble bars or trailing shoes.

The survey results also show that 9% of NI farms planned to purchase LESSE in the future, but 60% of respondents said they would use a contractor if LESSE became compulsory.

The updated ammonia strategy also includes a range of voluntary measures which will be incentivised on farms to reduce ammonia emissions.

This includes covering existing above ground slurry stores, establishing trees around livestock housing, reducing crude protein in livestock diets, installing low emission floor systems in sheds and increasing the time cattle spend grazing.

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DAERA give insight to new planning rules

More insight into new planning guidance which will be used for assessing ammonia emissions from livestock sheds was published by DAERA last week.

The guidance, known as the operational protocol, is to be used by DAERA to assess the potential impact of ammonia emissions from proposed agricultural buildings that are in the planning system with local councils.

The previous operational protocol was shelved by DAERA in December 2023 and since then advice on proposed farm sheds has been given to local councils on “a case-by-case basis”.

The issue with planning for farm buildings surrounds ammonia which is emitted from livestock manure and is deposited as nitrogen in sensitive habitats, such as bogs and woodlands.

DAERA state the new thresholds for assessing the impact of ammonia emissions on environmentally designated sites are “stricter” or “more conservative” than the previous protocol.

However, the document highlights that the new protocol will allow planning applications to be assessed on “site relevant thresholds” even if ammonia limits for a nearby environmental site are exceeded.

According to DAERA, this approach “can offer flexibility” by setting “more lenient damage thresholds” if there are not many livestock buildings in the vicinity of the site.

“This new assessment procedure provides a legally and scientifically robust approach to undertaking environmental assessments whilst protecting sensitive sites and habitats from the environmental damage attributable to ammonia emissions and nitrogen deposition,” the document reads.

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